Praedicator

Verba

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - Tuesday in the Fourth Week of Easter

[Acts 11:19-26 and John 10:22-30]

My sheep hear my voice; I know then, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father's hand. The Father and I are one.

Jesus' image of the shepherd and sheep built on the practice of a common corral where more than one shepherd kept sheep overnight. In the morning each shepherd comes and gives a distinctive call and only their sheep follow. In the image, the ability to recognize the shepherd's voice is the same as faith which enables a person to know the truth about Jesus. This is why Jesus tells the Jews who surround him with the question, "If you are the Christ, tell us plainly" that he HAS told them but they do not believe because they cannot hear what he has already said. They found it too hard to see in Jesus the Messianic deliverer of their dreams.
As in so much of the Gospel of John, the conversation takes place on more than one level of meaning! Jesus' offers eternal life but this is not just something in the future, it is a present reality that takes place when a person accepts Jesus in faith. What I find very consoling is that Jesus' promises that he will protect those who believe in him.
All of the gospel scriptures from the Gospel of John during the time after Easter require more than one reading and a lot of thought. The shepherd image is no exception. Nevertheless, our efforts will be rewarded with a deeper understanding of the person of Jesus and what our faith in him can mean. This is what is meant by listening to his voice and following him! AMEN